Summary
On 4th April 2016, the office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks (CGPDTM) issued a public notice regarding the abandonment of trademark applications. The notice clarifies that applications lacking timely responses to examination reports were treated as abandoned as per the Trademarks Act, 1999. It further addresses complaints from applicants who either submitted timely responses that were not considered or did not receive the examination reports. The Trade Mark Office has invited affected parties to submit representations with supporting documents by 30th April 2016. Representations received after this date will not be considered.
Following the en masse abandonment of trade mark applications the office of the CGPTD has issued a public notice, today 4th April, 2016, ‘relating to “treating applications as abandoned” in want of reply to Examination Report containing office objection within prescribed period.’
In the notice it is stated that as per the requirements of the Trademarks Act, 1999 all such application where the examination responses, to the examination reports of such applications, were not received within the 30 days time period have been treated as abandoned. Further it goes on to justify the actions of the Office by stating that “the examination reports were already posted on the official website and were also sent to the applicants or their authorized agents concerned individually.”
The notice proceeds to say that the Trade Marks Office has been in receipt of some complaints (we’re assuming a plethora of complaints) regarding such abandonment, where either the responses were submitted but not considered or complaints where the examination reports were not received at all by the applicants or their agents. In response to such complaints and “in the interest of justice” the Trade Mark Office has stated that following:
“It is notified to all concerned that in case any applicant or his authorised agent considers that his/her application has been erroneously treated as abandoned, he/she should send a representation with all details along with sufficient documentary evidence substantiating his/her case.
All such representations and reply to examination reports, if any, should be submitted to office of CGPDTM by email at abhishek.p@nic.in , cc: sdojha.tmr@nic.in before 30/04/2016. Appropriate action by the office will be taken in all such matters in which representation is received within the aforesaid period.
It should also be noted that any representation to this effect submitted after 30/04/2016 will not be considered.”
The link to the aforesaid circular is given below.
http://ipindia.nic.in/iponew/publicNotice_04April2016.pdf
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